H36 Selden in-mast furler mast bend and topping lift.

[sailboss]

I have the in-mast furler with Rodkicker hard vang. The boat is rigged with a topping lift and the mast has considerable bend to it. The mainsail seems to furl and unfurl okay, but the sail shape is poor with considerable twist.
Will taking the bend out help to flatten the sail?

 

[Jackdaw]

You're kind of on the right track; the mast pre-bend and the shape of the luff of the sail need to match for optimal performance. And also correct, rigs with in-mast furling have mainsails that are typically cut with a straighter/flatter luff to match the fact the that the mast (typically) has less pre-bend to help the sail furl.

Now, 'twist' is the vertical shape the sail takes on when the vang is eased. It allows the top of the sail to fly correctly in the greater windspeed aloft. The sailshape created by a miss-match you describe will not effect this. You're more likely to see the corners of the sail pulled tighter, with diagonal wrinkles created. Taking the bend out will actually give you MORE (fuller) shape, not less.

 

[seadaddler]

Check the manual and will tell how much bend is needed and than you can check it out and will be home tomorrow if you don't have manual
Nick

 

[chuckwayne]

the 356 - and I assume the 36 with in-mast should have 2" pre-bend. It sounds like your mast is set up like the std rig, 6". The selden manual tells how to measure and adjust this

 

[ice breaker]

You may want to experiment with moving the rodkicker out more to allow more tension to be placed on the sail. On our 41, we moved it out until the boom was nearly sitting on the arch, and the results were great. We can get a much flatter sail and the boat points better. The original install has holes drilled into the boom, but for experimentation the set screws would only need to be tightened to work.

 

[JSumme]

Concur with chuckwayne, it sounds like your rig is too tight. I have a H33e with B&R rig and Selden in-mast furling. There are very specific specs for the tension of your stays. I had a professional rigger come out and check the tension with a tension adjuster to meet the specs for my specific rig. I'd recommend the same. The sail should furl and unfurl easily with no apparent folds.

 

[seadaddler]

My boom sits right on top of my arch and that is how the rodkicker is setup for it
and I do not use winch to furl or unfurl and do use the winch when reefing only.
Never have any jamming problems except one time I did not watch furling the sail at the dock
and did not know until out on the race course and went into panick mode but unfurled to get a first place trophy that day.
Nick